The Cyber House Rules
Encyclopedia
"The Cyber House Rules" is the nineth episode in season three of Futurama
. It originally aired April 1, 2001. The title comes from the John Irving
novel The Cider House Rules
.
. She initially dreads seeing the people who made fun of her eye as a kid, but she decides rubbing her success in their faces would be very satisfying. Leela attempts to wave her impressive lifestyle in the other orphans' faces, but they quickly resume making fun of her eye. But Adlai Atkins (voiced by guest star Tom Kenny
), the only other success story from the orphanarium, shoos them away. Adlai, now a phaser eye surgeon, offers to rework Leela's face to make her look normal, and she jumps at the chance, in spite of Fry's
objections. Meanwhile, Bender adopts twelve orphans for the $100-a-week-per-child government stipend
.
The operation is a success, and Leela adapts to her new, normal-looking life. Adlai asks the two-eyed Leela out, which causes Fry to exhibit signs of jealousy. In short order, Adlai tells Leela that he is ready to settle down and have kids. A receptive Leela suggests that they should adopt, and Adlai agrees. They go to Bender, who is finding that government stipends are not a good get-rich-quick scheme (as it costs him more to look after the children every week than the $1200 the government pays every week and the stipend was merely to help raise the children) and is now selling the twelve children. Leela wants to adopt Sally, (voiced by guest star Nicole St. John), a girl with an ear on her forehead. Adlai objects, and then suggests that the child have an operation to remove the ear and make her "acceptable". Leela, horribly offended, demands that Adlai undo the surgery he performed and make her a cyclops again.
Bender, having been arrested by child services for "child cruelty, child endangerment, depriving children of food, selling children as food and misrepresenting the weight of livestock", returns the orphans to the orphanarium (which is subsequently named after him, though later episodes do not reflect this).
episode "The Eye of the Beholder
." The title of the episode comes from the John Irving
novel The Cider House Rules
. Bender also quotes from Irving's novel when he says to the children: "Goodnight, you princes of Maine, you kings of New New England."
Futurama
Futurama is an American animated science fiction sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening and David X. Cohen for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series follows the adventures of a late 20th-century New York City pizza delivery boy, Philip J...
. It originally aired April 1, 2001. The title comes from the John Irving
John Irving
John Winslow Irving is an American novelist and Academy Award-winning screenwriter.Irving achieved critical and popular acclaim after the international success of The World According to Garp in 1978...
novel The Cider House Rules
The Cider House Rules
The Cider House Rules is a 1985 novel by John Irving. It is Irving's sixth published novel, and has been adapted into a film of the same name and a stage play by Peter Parnell.-Plot:...
.
Plot
Leela is invited to a reunion at her old orphanariumOrphanage
An orphanage is a residential institution devoted to the care of orphans – children whose parents are deceased or otherwise unable or unwilling to care for them...
. She initially dreads seeing the people who made fun of her eye as a kid, but she decides rubbing her success in their faces would be very satisfying. Leela attempts to wave her impressive lifestyle in the other orphans' faces, but they quickly resume making fun of her eye. But Adlai Atkins (voiced by guest star Tom Kenny
Tom Kenny
Thomas James "Tom" Kenny is an American actor, voice actor and comedian. He is especially known for his long-running-role as SpongeBob SquarePants in the television series of the same name, as well as the live-action character Patchy the Pirate, Gary the Snail and the French narrator based on...
), the only other success story from the orphanarium, shoos them away. Adlai, now a phaser eye surgeon, offers to rework Leela's face to make her look normal, and she jumps at the chance, in spite of Fry's
Philip J. Fry
Philip J. Fry, known simply as Fry, is a fictional character, the main protagonist of the animated science fiction sitcom Futurama. He is voiced by Billy West using a version of his own voice as he sounded when he was 25.-Character overview:...
objections. Meanwhile, Bender adopts twelve orphans for the $100-a-week-per-child government stipend
Stipend
A stipend is a form of salary, such as for an internship or apprenticeship. It is often distinct from a wage or a salary because it does not necessarily represent payment for work performed, instead it represents a payment that enables somebody to be exempt partly or wholly from waged or salaried...
.
The operation is a success, and Leela adapts to her new, normal-looking life. Adlai asks the two-eyed Leela out, which causes Fry to exhibit signs of jealousy. In short order, Adlai tells Leela that he is ready to settle down and have kids. A receptive Leela suggests that they should adopt, and Adlai agrees. They go to Bender, who is finding that government stipends are not a good get-rich-quick scheme (as it costs him more to look after the children every week than the $1200 the government pays every week and the stipend was merely to help raise the children) and is now selling the twelve children. Leela wants to adopt Sally, (voiced by guest star Nicole St. John), a girl with an ear on her forehead. Adlai objects, and then suggests that the child have an operation to remove the ear and make her "acceptable". Leela, horribly offended, demands that Adlai undo the surgery he performed and make her a cyclops again.
Bender, having been arrested by child services for "child cruelty, child endangerment, depriving children of food, selling children as food and misrepresenting the weight of livestock", returns the orphans to the orphanarium (which is subsequently named after him, though later episodes do not reflect this).
Broadcast and reception
In its initial airing, the episode received a Nielsen rating of 3.9/7, placing it 79th among primetime shows for the week of March 26 - April 1, 2001.Cultural references
The bandages wrapped fully around Leela's head, and the gradual removal of them as seen through her perspective is a reference to the Twilight ZoneTwilight zone
-Television series and spinoffs:*The Twilight Zone, the anthology television series and its franchise:**The Twilight Zone , the 1959–1964 original television series***Twilight Zone: The Movie, a 1983 film based on the original series...
episode "The Eye of the Beholder
The Eye of the Beholder
"The Eye of the Beholder" is an episode of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone.-Synopsis:...
." The title of the episode comes from the John Irving
John Irving
John Winslow Irving is an American novelist and Academy Award-winning screenwriter.Irving achieved critical and popular acclaim after the international success of The World According to Garp in 1978...
novel The Cider House Rules
The Cider House Rules
The Cider House Rules is a 1985 novel by John Irving. It is Irving's sixth published novel, and has been adapted into a film of the same name and a stage play by Peter Parnell.-Plot:...
. Bender also quotes from Irving's novel when he says to the children: "Goodnight, you princes of Maine, you kings of New New England."
External links
- The Cyber House Rules at The Infosphere.